


Gaia Genesis

by byuntaepeas



Category: Loki - Fandom, The Avengers (Marvel Movies), Thor (Movies)
Genre: F/M, Gen, Mutants, SHIELD
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-06-08
Updated: 2018-06-08
Packaged: 2019-05-19 18:23:41
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 5,060
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/14878905
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/byuntaepeas/pseuds/byuntaepeas
Summary: When Aspen was born, she received a gift. It was the gift of nature itself. Her soul was connected with every living creature, every creation Mother Nature had given the planet upon its birth. She could speak with animals, both vocally and telepathically, ask them about their sorrows or send them on their way. She could nurture the plants around her and make them grow on command with just the flick of the wrist. Her soul was deeply rooted in the earth, connecting to her emotions and desires. Flowers would blossom all around her if she felt happy, the weather would grow calm and soothing as she was content, the skies turning dark and the wind stormed if she felt upset, the ground cracking and shaking if she grew angry. But there was a risk that came with this connection - she had to be in constant control of her own mind and emotions, as one overwhelming moment could cause a natural disaster.





	Gaia Genesis

**Author's Note:**

> **Prologue - The origin of Gaia pt. 1**

Nature, in the broadest sense, is the natural, physical or material world or universe. It can be considered a phenomena of the physical world or life in general. It is the sun that casts it light above us and leads the way. It is the wind that carries our hope and dreams. It is the rain that washes away our sorrow. It is the ocean that comes and goes with the tides. It is the ground on which we walk and build and plant. It is the fire that keeps us warm. It is the forest that provides us with the very oxygen we breathe. It is the plethora of living creatures walking this planet. It is all that is pure and beautiful, it is all that we should fear and love wrapped in one.

Nature is the mother of all life, nurturing all creatures big and small with love and protection they deserve. But nature is a cruel mother as she - like any parent - will punish those who misbehave. It takes life as easily as it is given, but not without warning. When humanity which owes their life and luxury to the grace of nature, destroys the land which they had been given, nature warns for the consequences. A simple quiver of earth, water overflowing its boundaries, tears pouring down from the sky above - but if these warnings go unheeded, nature takes back that which it had given. Life itself.

As a young girl, Aspen Sterling was fascinated with nature in all its glory. She admired the scent of even the smallest flower, the shadow cast upon her by the tallest trees shielding her from the piercing heat of summer, the beautiful melody sung by the chorus of birds in flight. She understood the excitement of bees as they landed upon a freshly bloomed flower, could hear the cries of the grass as their hair was cut by the lawnmower. She giggled at the mother duck telling her children to stop splashing during her swimming lesson. She was not afraid of the dangers that nature hid, she knew the trees and plants would protect her from any harm and vowed to protect them in return.

You see, when Aspen was born, she received a gift. It was the gift of nature itself. Her soul was connected with every living creature, every creation Mother Nature had given the planet upon its birth. She could speak with animals, both vocally and telepathically, ask them about their sorrows or send them on their way. She could nurture the plants around her and make them grow on command with just the flick of the wrist. Her soul was deeply rooted in the earth, connecting to her emotions and desires. Flowers would blossom all around her if she felt happy, the weather would grow calm and soothing as she was content, the skies turning dark and the wind stormed if she felt upset, the ground cracking and shaking if she grew angry. But there was a risk that came with this connection - she had to be in constant control of her own mind and emotions, as one overwhelming moment could cause a natural disaster.

Being the child that ran barefoot through the mud, the child that spoke to animals as if she were in deep conversation, did not leave a great impression with society. From the very first years she attended school she was teased by her peers, outcast for being strange and different. And the children that did seem interested in interaction were forbidden by their parents, not wanting their children to be seen with a child that didn't quite seem right in her mind.

At first, her parents didn't think much of their child's behavior. Some children had an invisible friend with whom they played, Aspen had the same amount of fun just being in nature. She was a cheerful and free spirited young girl, she seemed happy which was what mattered most to them. But as time went on, the family became shunned from the community as their reputation turned into the parents of an insane child. Giving in to the social peer pressure, they started to grow cold to all the stories their young daughter told them about the adventures outside. They told her that normal children didn't play outside in the mud the way she did, that normal children didn't pretend they could speak with animals. They told her to act like a normal child, for she had become a disgrace to her parents. And the last thing Aspen wanted was to let her parents down.

She tried to suppress her desire to run outside with the wind dancing on her skin, feeling nature's heartbeat on her touch as she nurtured the seeds dropped by a skybird. She tried to ignore the greetings and the woes of the animals around her as she made her way to school and home every single day. She ached, having to suppress that which made her feel so happy and special - ashamed of that which she once prided herself for without ever wondering how she got it. It never once crossed her mind that she was different, not until her parents pointed out how her gift was a curse upon their family and they felt ashamed.

Over the years, the teasing of her peers turned into bullying. She was outcast by her own classmates and the system seemed to fail her as teachers were too bothered to speak up for her sake. Aspen's cheerful personality darkened into a depressed state, she merely lived to be alive but not to live. And her gift carried on her suppressed feelings like a curse. Nature reacted to her emotions. The sky was often darkened and there seemed no end to the rain pouring down even when the forecast predicted the sunny days of summer. The plants that used to decorate the Sterling household never lasted longer than a day before dying out, the Sterlings blamed the humidity and lack of sunlight. The class pet - a goldfish - which had been the class mascot for years, stopped swimming. As the children of the class arrived at school one day, they found their precious mascot floating at the top of his aquarium, belly up and no longer flipping his fins. Dead.

It far the first of many casualties that would come with nature's curse. The children mocked that it was because of the weird kid in class, they spread the rumors that the weird nature kid had killed the goldfish - if only they knew how true they were, even if it was not intentional - and that people had to stay away or else she would send the plague to haunt them.

Aspen was alone, even surrounded by so many of her peers, she felt alone. The desire to confide in the critters that lived around the school grounds - as she had done many times before - grew bigger and bigger, but she had made a promise to her parents. No more talking to plants and animals, no more disgrace upon their family. She found her temporary solace outside, hiding under the bleachers as she picked at her sandwich. She was alone, even with so much calling out to her, wanting to protect and comfort her but she ignored it. She had to ignore it, she had to stay alone. Or at least - she thought she was alone.

Like any school, hers had the social cliques that divided the sea of peers her age. There were the cheerleaders and the jocks, the nerds and the goths, different kind of people that grouped together with a mutual interest, and yet she was all alone. Usually she was fine hiding underneath the bleachers, but it turned out that the jocks were feeling especially annoying today and decided to take out their boredom on the weird kid.

"Hey freak," one of them called out to her, startling her. She almost hit her head as she jumped up from her place, staring at the taller young boy like a deer caught in headlights. "Eating with the ants again?" The boys surrounding him chuckled, though it could hardly be considered funny or witty.

"Go away, Pierce," Aspen muttered, reaching down to grab her back in an attempt to walk away, but the jock had already lunged forwards and snatched her bag away.

"I'm sorry, guess we don't have enough eyes or paws to talk to you?" He continued, holding the bag up as he glared down at her with a smirk plastered on his face. "You're such a freak."

"So I've been told." She stated dryly, feeling a gust of wind passing underneath the bleachers as she eyed the bully before her. "Can I have my bag, please?"

"Oh, so the wildebeest has manners?" He snorted, his gaze traveling off to the distance for a moment, the smug look on his face only growing before looking back at the raven haired girl before him. "You want your bag?" She glared back at him without acknowledging his hypothetical question, her expression only worsening his mood. He pursed his lips as he tossed the back inside, partially landing in the pool of mud out on the field left behind by this morning's rain. "Go fetch, freak."

He and his posse laughed as her hazel orbs landed on her bag, the wind flying through her dark locks as she glared back at the jock. "You jerk." She cursed at him before stomping towards her bag.

"What did you call me?" He growled at her, balling his fists. "Hey! I am talking to you!" He continued, raising his voice with anger as she continued to ignore him while reaching out to grab her bag. Pierce took quick and heavy steps to catch up on her, pushing her down with force as she landed in the puddle of mud next to her bag. "What did you call me?!" The posse gathered around their team captain, laughing at the fight of the raven haired girl now covered in mud on the ground as Pierce stared at her triumphantly.

Aspen clenched her teeth, feeling the sting of the impact with which she landed on the cold hard ground, her face and clothes drenched and splattered with dirt and mud. The laughter of the boys in front of her echoed through her ears hauntingly, sending chills down her spine and tears welling up in her eyes.

"Aww, what's the matter?" Pierce cooed, the trembling of his target not going unnoticed. "I thought you enjoyed playing in the mud?" His words were followed by another menacing laugh, stomping his foot in the puddle, splashing more mud in her pale face.

"Stop it..." She muttered without exchanging so much as a glimpse with her bully, her hands grasping around the handle of her bag as she tried to get up from the ground.

"That's what you get for calling me a jerk, you freak!" He laughed, reaching out to give the girl another push out of balance, watching as she stumbled back onto the ground with an audible oof escaping her lips.

"You are a jerk!" She couldn't help herself, she screamed back at him through her tears of both pain and humiliation. Her hands grasping a handful of mud in the process, another gust of wind passed them like a force that came out of nowhere. But Pierce and his posse didn't pay attention to the wind that came up so suddenly, but rather the fact that the weird young girl dared to speak back once again.

"You little runt, what did yo-" Before he could finish his sentence, looming over the girl as a predator, Aspen made the rash decision to throw the handful of mud in his face. As he cried out in surprise and disgust, the raven haired girl scrambled up from the ground and made a run for it, knowing that her last actions most definitely earned herself a beating.

"Hey! Where are you going!" He yelled after her, watching as she sprinted across the football field. "You idiots, don't let her get away!" Pierce commanded his posse who stood idly by until they were told what to do, fearing the wrath of their team captain as they all started the chase.

Aspen ran as fast as fast as her legs could carry her, hearing the cries of the football team behind her as they gained in on her. Tears were flowing down her cheeks in fear, in misery. But she had no time to be afraid, she had to make sure to reach the school so she could be safe. Or at least safe enough to be under parental supervision where neither Pierce nor his team could beat her up - where she would be safe until the final bell and her parents would pick her up.

But before she could even get halfway, a bunch of jocks had already gained in on her and a hand reached forward to grab the collar of her jacket. He pulled her back in her flight, almost choking her with her own item of clothing as the force pushed her back onto the ground with a loud thud. "Leave me alone!" She pleaded as the group circled around her like vultures, only stepping aside to let their captain stand in front of her. His eyes were fixated on her, sharp and dangerous as she could feel the anger radiating out of them, anger caused by the humiliation this freak of a girl had caused him.

"You're going to pay for that, you bitch!" He sneered at her, his hand clenched into a tight fist ready to strike down upon her. She closed her eyes and mentally prayed for help, knowing that screaming would be futile at this point, there were no teachers around to hear her anyway. She braced herself for impact when a fluttering sound passed before her, a gust of wind brushing through the wild strands of hair that covered her face. "What the hell?!" She heard Pierce exclaim and dared to open her eyes. His hand was still clenched before him, he was staring up at the sky for a moment before turning his gaze back to her as if remembering what he was doing. But before he could lift his fist again to lunge at her, another blur of black fluttered in between them, this time accompanied by a loud cacaw. A crow had doven in between the two young teens in an attempt to stop the jock from hurting her.

The cawing continued, loudly and obnoxiously as the crow circled above the teens. Another crow appeared, joining in the circling. And another. And another. Soon, the sky above them almost seem to be cast in shadow by the murder of crows that had gathered, cawing loudly as they circled above them. Pierce and his posse stared up at the flock with confusion and surprise, while Aspen stared up in wonder. Unlike the jocks, she could tell what the feathered creatures were calling out; they were warning him, screaming at him to go away and leave her alone, like her prayers were answered. A subconscious smile crept on her face, one that didn't go unnoticed by her bully.

"You freak! What did you do?!" He yelled at her, the way she smiled at the birds above her annoyed him to no end above the anger that had already been boiling inside of him. "You think summoning a flock of crows is going to save you?"

He reached down and grabbed her collar, pulling her up as he raised his fist menacingly. The grip around her collar was tight, making it a little harder to breathe but she chose to defy the odds and glare back at him. "I-I didn't summon them but they're not called a flock of crows-" She muttered, the corners of her lips tugging into a smirk, almost daring him to reach out and see what was going to happen. The moment Pierce had grabbed her, the cawing increased almost aggressively, all screaming to prepare their attack. They were just waiting for a signal. One she was about to give. "It's called a murder."

The cawing was almost deafening as tens of birds kamikazed down to the bully, sharpened beaks at the ready, claws extended and wings flopping aggressively. They covered Pierce almost completely, scratching his skin with their paws as their beaks dug into his face. He screamed as he released his grip on the girl, Aspen dropping back onto the ground as she watched the scene before her. Taking this opportunity, she quickly grabbed her bag and scrambled to her feet, making her quick escape back to the school building as she could hear the agonizing cries of pain behind her. She shouldn't have smiled, she shouldn't have felt so victorious, but for the first time in forever, she felt happiness.

But her happiness didn't last long as she was called into the principal's office just an hour after the incident. Inside was the boy who tried to beat her, Pierce, with scratches and blood all over his face and hands, his letterman jacket and clothing scratched and torn from the clawing and pecking, his hair covered in a mixture of what looked like dirt, blood and possibly bird poop to add to the humiliation. Aspen knew she shouldn't have laughed, but she couldn't help the tickling sensation in her stomach as she watched the boy who tormented her after receiving his comeuppance.

"There she is. There's the freak that did this!" Pierce practically screamed at her was he pointed his finger accusingly.

"Calm down, mister Andrews," the principal told him before turning his stiffened gaze to the young girl, prompting her to drop the amused smile that was still tugging on her lips. "Have a seat, miss Sterling. Your parents are on their way."

"M-my parents?" Aspen repeated, surprised and maybe even a bit horrified as she dropped into the seat in front of his large, mahogany desk. "What for?"

"To discuss your possible expulsion."

The girl froze, staring at the stern looking man seated before her. What did he mean, her expulsion? Why was she being expelled when she did nothing wrong? "I'm being expelled? Why? What did I do?"

"For trying to murder me!" Pierce continued to accuse, breathing through his nostrils like an angered bull.

"I-- What?!" She exclaimed, her eyes widening as she stared at the boy before turning to the principal. "I didn't try to murder him! I didn't do anything! Pierce wanted to beat me up! He was bullying me!"

"Is that so?" The principal merely sneered, raising a single eyebrow in questioning. "Then would you mind explaining to me why it is your peer that is covered in bruises and wounds, miss Sterling?"

"That freak called the birds to attack me and called it a murder!"

"That's what you call a group of crows, dumbass. A murder of crows!" Aspen released a frustrated sigh as her head snapped back to the boy. She couldn't understand how this boy was considered such a golden boy around the school when he lacked any sense of intelligence or common sense.

"Mind your language, miss Sterling."

"But he called me a freak!" Aspen rebelled, feeling the harsh glare of her teacher burn through her skin.

"Mister Andrews is not on trial today," Of course the principal would say such a thing. Of course, the pride and joy of the school's football team would even be defended in a court of law if he was accused of murder he actually committed, if it meant he could play the homecoming game. God forbid we would lose something so important. "Harming another student is not something we take lightly and - considering your reputation - these accusations are also not far fetched."

Her eyes narrowed at the latter of his sentence. "What is that supposed to mean?"

"It means you're a crazy freak, Sterling!" Pierce commented, almost howling at her.

"Mister Andrews, you may take your leave now, thank you." The principal nodded at the young bully, who shot Aspen another amused glare before disappearing through the door, slamming it shut behind him. The older male cleared his throat to regain her attention. "You are a concern, miss Sterling."

Aspen sank slightly in her seat, her entire body feeling tense with nerves and emotions. Outside the wind had started to pick up once more as she grasped the fabric of her jeans within her fists. The way the principal was looking at her, every word plagued with a sense of accusation while still attempting to be politically correct.

"Miss Sterling, correct me if I'm wrong but your records show the bare minimum of social contact when it comes to your peers or the people around you. No known friends, no active participation in social events such as birthdays or play dates in your past. No partners in class for assignments or presentations. You've often been seen excluding yourself from the crowd. Always seen by yourself." He continued, his voice cutting through her like a knife. It was like rubbing salt into the deep wounds that was her life. She was painfully aware of how alone she was, how people had always called her weird and teased her for preferring to spend time outside by herself - surrounded by nature and animals and all things that made her feel comfortable rather than the crowd of her peers. It wasn't always by choice, when she was younger she had no idea what harm it could do if she spent her time outside running after squirrels as they told her where they hid their stash of nuts for the winter. It wasn't until she reached middle school and her parents started scolding her for her free spirit, calling her crazy for claiming she could speak with the critters she surrounded herself with, that she started to realize how much of an outsider she had become and this carried on as she started high school. "Isolated people often have their quirks, quirks that not always benefit society and are therefore a concern. Considering your history with your peers, it would not be too far fetched to believe you would be capable of trying to harm someone who could possibly seem superior by popularity."

"Mister Percy, I swear," Her voice came out weak and pleading, shaken by the confrontation of her ever growing miserably life and enhanced by the accusations. She didn't call upon the crows like some witch, to harm her classmate. At least - not that she could recall. They showed up on the nick of time and saved her from being beaten by the school's golden boy who seemed inclined to waltz over everyone who was - in his eyes - lesser than him. "I didn't do anything, I don't know where those crows came from. They just showed up and attacked him. He was bullying me so I took that opportunity to run. I'm innocent, please believe me."

She knew she was special, that she truly had the gift of understanding nature and communicating with living creatures other than humans. But she never told a soul, other than trying to make her parents believe that she actually did have an intriguing conversation with the neighbour's chihuahua when she was seven, they just called her crazy. And there were times where she actually started to believe that. But he couldn't possibly believe that Aspen was capable of summoning a murder of crows to attack her school bully, like some sort of witchcraft.

"Then how do you explain the state in which mister Andrews entered my office? His statement very clearly pointed at your involvement."

"Mister Percy, you-" Before Aspen could continue, the door swung open and two more people entered the room, and at first glance you could hardly see the resemblance between the three. Aspen's hair was the deepest shade of black, slightly curling halfway down her shoulders, orbs of deep hazel filled with curiosity and wonder, skin fair but seemingly paler in contrast to her raven colored hair. Her parents, though equally fair skinned, had locks of golden and eyes shaded in an icy blue with not even a hint of brown anywhere in sight.

"Aspen, what is the meaning of this?" Her mother practically shrieked, cheeks flushed by the humiliation of being rushed into the principal's office.

"Mister and misses Sterling," The principal nodded her head in acknowledgement before gesturing at the two empty seats. "Please, take a seat."

"What is the meaning of this?" Her father muttered roughly as he planted himself in the chair, brows furrowed. "What did she do?"

"Your daughter has physically attacked one of her fellow peers today," The principal explained as if it was nothing special and the crime had already been confessed. Aspen felt like she was somehow tricked or framed as some sort of elaborate blame the outcast game. "There seemed to have been an altercation between our football captain mister Andrews and your daughter which lead to the young boy returning to my office in tatters. We're considering expulsion."

She could feel their stern gazes burn through her skin, just another reason to pile onto the long list of things why the Sterling family felt so ashamed of their insane outcast daughter. Again, she felt her heart racing with emotions, she felt framed for a crime she didn't commit - not willingly, at least. She saw it with her own eyes, the murder of crows appeared out of nowhere for her protection without her ever summoning for their help. Yes, she understood their cries as they circled above their heads, she had always understood the sounds those creatures made and often found herself giggling as the birds cackled about food for the most part.

"You did what?" The shrill voice of her mother snapped her out of her thoughts as the girl turned to look at her mother's widened gaze. "Aspen, we raised you better than that!"

"But I didn't even touch him..." Aspen practically whined, exhausted at the fact that she had been pleading for her innocence for the last ten minutes yet no one seemed to even give her the benefit of the doubt. "He called me names, pushed me in the mud, he wanted to beat me and suddenly this murder of crows appeared and attacked him."

"Crows?" Her father repeated, almost through the grit of his teeth as he now turned to look at his daughter as well. "Don't tell me you were trying to speak with animals again."

"I wasn't." She scene unfolded in her mind, vividly recalling the sound of wings flapping aggressively as tens of birds came flocking from the sky and attacked every inch of bare skin the boy had visible, tearing through his clothes as if it was nothing. Again, imagining it once more, a smile crept on her face. "But you should have seen it... He got what he deserved, he was screaming like a little child. Finally feeling what it's like to be threatened."

"Aspen, this is not a laughing matter!" Her mother scolded her, snaking her slender fingers around the young girls' arm as her nails dug into her skin. "Stop that this instant!"

Again, mister Percy cleared his throat to gain attention, starting his sentence with a disapproving hum. "Seeing as your daughter shows no sign of remorse nor has given the impression of admitting to her crime, we see no other choice but to expel her until further notice."

"Come now, Percy, no need to take such dire measures." Her father let out a flustered chuckle, focusing his gaze on the man before him. The last thing he needed was for his child to get kicked out of school like some delinquent, it was bad enough society attempted to ostracise them for being known as the wild child's parents. Things were supposed to go back to normal, she was supposed to be normal and stop the nonsense that she was declaring about speaking with animals and hugging trees. "I'm sure we can solve this in a civil manner."

"The safety of our students is our top priority, mister Sterling," The principal carried such a blank expression, even while discussing the events of today or drilling Aspen for a motive. "Your daughter enrolled in this school with quite the reputation, every student has their quirks and usually grow out of it - which is why we decided to give young Aspen here a chance. But seeing as she made no social improvements and in light of today's events, my hands are tied." He continued, his gaze now lowering down at the younger girl. A chill ran down the raven haired girl's spine as their gaze connected. His grey eyes were filled with such detest and coldness, like he was disgusted of her very being. "If the board or the other parents hear of this incident - that a mentally unstable child caused harm then- "

"Enough!" Her father slammed his fist on the table as he shot up from his seat. He wasn't angered by the implications the principal was making, but rather the fact that he was put in such a vulnerable position where his name and reputation was once more dragged through the mud because of the condition of his daughter. Perhaps it was their own fault for letting her run around with her fantasies when she was younger, but like the principal had said they thought she would grow out of her quirks, but she didn't. Instead, it only became worse, so it seemed. "We are going home."

Without waiting for further instructions or permission, the Sterling elders got up, her mother dragging her up as she did so while her nails stil dug deep into her skin. Aspen winced at the stinging sensation in her arm but it only became worse when she struggled to get out of the grip. She could see her mother's bottom lip trembling with tension, a habit she displayed whenever she was trying to hold back the anger that filled her in a desperate attempt to not lose face in front of public. Over the years, status and reputation seemed to mean the world to the Sterlings, something Asper's gift constantly stained. 

**Author's Note:**

> This has to be one of the longest chapters I have ever written, and to think this is only half of the entire prologue. I felt like I had to establish Asper a tad before introducing her into the MCU timeline that we're familiar with.
> 
> I love comments and feedback so don't shy away if you have any. This will eventually turn into a Loki x OC story but we have a long way to go so I hope you bear with me.


End file.
